A lifelong passion for peanut butter and jelly

Simple culinary combo triggers childhood memories

Peanut-butter-rich cupcakes are topped with a spoonful of grape jelly.

Photograph by: DARREN STONE
, TIMES COLONIST

Cravings for certain foods can be triggered by memories of long ago. It happened to me the other day when looking at some old photos from my days in Winnipeg.

One summer there, when I was about six years old, my parents had set up our tent in the backyard to air it out. My friend and I thought it was the perfect place to play. When lunchtime arrived, my mom asked if we wanted to eat in the tent.

We excitedly said yes, and she put a small table and chairs inside, and moments later came out with a lunch you could not call gourmet — peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with a side of cheesies, accompanied by cool glasses of Freshie, a Kool-Aid-like drink.

The thought of that sunny, happy day made me crave a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I quickly prepared one, minus the Freshie and cheesies, which are not staples in my kitchen.

The sandwich is most frequently made on room-temperature bread, but during my trips to the southern United States I have enjoyed the sandwich grilled, with a golden crust and a warm, gooey, sweet and peanut-y middle. That grilled sandwich tastes awesome with a cool glass of milk and, as you’ll see by the recipe here it’s easy to make.

The combination of peanut butter and jelly also works well in other foods, and you'll discover that with the peanut butter and jelly cupcakes recipe.

RECIPES

Peanut and Jelly Cupcakes

Prep. time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 18 minutes

Makes: 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) all-purpose flour

2 tsp (10 mL) baking powder

1/2 cup (125 mL) smooth peanut butter

1/2 cup (125 mL) granulated sugar

1/4 cup (60 mL) butter, at room temperature

2 large eggs

1 cup (250 mL) 2-per-cent milk

12 tsp (60 mL) grape jelly (I used Welch’s brand)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with large paper baking cups (don’t use the giant-sized ones).

Place the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Place the peanut butter, sugar and butter in a large bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer, and beat until well-combined. Mix in the eggs, one at a time.

Beat in the milk, alternately with the flour mixture, until a smooth batter forms. (Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl once or twice during this process to ensure the wet and dry ingredients are thoroughly combined.)

Fill each paper baking cup half full with the batter. Set 1 tsp (5 mL) of the grape jelly in the centre of the batter in each baking cup. Now divide and fill each baking cup almost to the top with the remaining batter, ensuring that the grape jelly is completely covered by it.

Bake the cupcakes in the middle of the oven for 18 minutes, or until they spring back when touched in the very centre. Cool cupcakes on a baking rack to room temperature, and then finish as described below.

For the frosting and to finish:

1/4 cup (60 mL) butter, at room temperature

1/4 cup (60 mL) smooth peanut butter

1 cup (250 mL) icing sugar

1 tbsp (15 mL) milk

12 tsp (60 mL) grape jelly

Place butter and peanut butter in a bowl and beat to combine. Beat in the icing sugar and milk until well combined and the mixture has lightened.

Place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe a ring of frosting on each cupcake as shown in the photo. Set 1 tsp (5 mL) of the jelly in the centre of each ring.

Refrigerate cupcakes until the frosting is set, and then loosely tent with plastic wrap until ready to serve. Cupcakes can be made up to a day before devouring.

Butter one side of each bread slice. Top and spread the unbuttered side of two of the bread slices with the peanut butter and the jelly. Top with the other slices of bread, buttered side up.

Heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium, to medium-high heat. When hot, add the sandwiches and grill three minutes per side, or until the bread is nicely toasted and the peanut butter and jelly is warm. Slice the sandwiches in half and serve.

Late 19th century: Invention of the style of peanut butter we enjoy today.

1893: Peanut butter grows in popularity during and after the Chicago World’s Fair.

1901: First reference to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It appeared in an article in the Boston Cooking-School Magazine of Culinary Science and Domestic Economics written by Julia Davis Chandler.

Early 1900s: The peanut-butter-and-jelly combination becomes a hit with young people, but it takes a while for all levels of society to get a taste for it. Peanut butter was considered a delicacy and served at upscale events and fancy tea rooms. For example, at New York’s Ye Olde English Coffee House, they served a peanut butter and pimento sandwich. The Vanity Fair Tearoom offered peanut butter with watercress.

1920s: Peanut butter sandwiches move down the class structure as the price of peanut butter declines due to the commercialization of the industry. The invention of sliced bread also meant children could make sandwiches themselves. Thus, peanut butter sandwiches became a top meal option for kids during the Depression.

Second World War: During the conflict, peanut butter and jelly become part of U.S. military rations. The story goes that soldiers added jelly to their peanut butter to make it more enjoyable. Those who made it home from the war now had a taste for the combination, and sales of peanut butter and jelly increased dramatically in the United States.

— Sources: Foodtimeline.org, Peanuts: The Illustrious History of the Goober Pea by Andrew F. Smith

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